And that’s not a good sign for a thin Knicks bench in need of the 6-foot-8 forward being the defensive dynamo and consistent 3-point spark on offense that surprised the NBA the first three months of last season.

When Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy visited the Garden last season, he gave an unsolicited shout-out to Thomas as arguably the league’s most improved player. Thomas’ big season off the pine started to go awry with a knee sprain in late January. He slumped upon his return and finally went down for the season March 8 with more knee issues.

Thomas re-signed this offseason for four years and $27 million, but the Knicks’ hardest-working player — who has grown close with Carmelo Anthony — has been mediocre in the first three games, including his two-point, 1-for-6 showing Tuesday at The Palace. Van Gundy, the most entertaining coaching interview in the NBA, listed seven players on the Knicks roster, doling out praise, but left out Thomas.

Thomas’ defense hasn’t been stout enough to cover up his poor offensive start. He’s shooting 33.3 percent, averaging 3.3 points in 20.6 minutes a game. He’s a minus-8 – second-worst on the club — and only has attempted one 3-pointer, which he missed.

Hornacek’s banking on Thomas has led to 27-year-old European rookie Mindaugus Kuzminskas getting the short shrift. Kuzminskas has been very effective on offense in his limited action. He runs the floor terrifically and scored in bunches during the preseason.

Kuzminskas, a DNP the past two games, isn’t considered a gritty-enough defender yet by the coaching staff. But if Thomas continues to play down to his former level as a spare part in New Orleans and Oklahoma City, then Kuzminskas could be the bench lift the 1-2 Knicks need.

Other observations:

— Carmelo Anthony is shooting 41.2 percent overall, 26.7 percent from 3-point land and was 2 for 9 in the fourth quarter against the Pistons. But it was interesting to note that as Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose railed on about the defensive shortcomings in one corner of Detroit’s tiny visitor’s locker room, Anthony said the issue was offense down the stretch, that their defense rose to the occasion in the second half, giving up 38 points. It was a good sign that Anthony owned up to the notion that he could’ve stolen the game had he gotten hot. Anthony said the players are still getting familiar with the offensive flow and whom to go to down the stretch.

Carmelo AnthonyGetty Images

— Hornacek got technical about the players’ movements in the confines of the triangle spacing after the Detroit loss. He’s concerned about the imprecise cuts the players made.

“You’ve got to get set and keep the ball moving and cut hard,’’ Hornacek said. “When we make our cuts, sometimes we’re cutting just to get out of the way of a pass or you’re cutting to set a screen on someone. I thought too many times we’d throw it to somebody and then we’d just half-cut through so that we might not get it. We just have to cut as a team.’’

— As much as Hornacek likes the speed game, he realizes his forces aren’t a match for Mike D’Antoni’s speedball attack with the Rockets. The offensive coaching pioneer racked up 130 points on the Knicks in preseason and visits the Garden on Wednesday night.